Children learn through interacting with their environment. Infants and toddlers are often introduced to learning through audio and visual stimulation related to different fields of experience. Educational devices and toys not only provide neurological stimulation, but also can help children develop motor skills. Thus, it would be desirable to provide an electronic toy with interactive features that encourage a child to learn letters, numbers, counting, spelling, etc. In particular, it is desirable to provide an entertainment device including activities with which a child can interact to produce sensory stimulating output, including sound, light, or animation. Such activities not only stimulate the senses and reinforce educational material (teaching cause and effect, ABCs, and 123s), but they also help to develop and refine a child's motor skills.
The present invention is directed generally to an activity device or toy including a rotatable container coupled to an control unit such that, when the container is engaged or manipulated, sensory stimulating output is produced by the electronics assembly. More specifically, the present invention is directed to an activity device or toy including a container having a fluid-filled cavity, wherein the container is coupled to an control unit such that the rotation of the container not only activates the control unit, but also agitates the fluid within the cavity.